Toxic Tort & Environmental Defense

Marjorie Farris, John Tate, Blaine Early and Sarah G. Cronan

Related Information

Stites & Harbison has a long history of involvement in complex toxic tort and environmental litigation.  Beginning in the early 1970s, Johns-Manville Corporation selected Stites & Harbison to defend it in asbestos litigation.  The late Lively Wilson, who was a well-known trial lawyer, tried the second asbestos case in the United States for Johns-Manville. The firm tried many of the corporation's subsequent cases across the country and continues to defend companies against asbestos claims.

That tradition of hard work and technical insight continues today.  Stites & Harbison provides risk management and litigation services to industrial, manufacturing, chemical, coatings and other companies.  We combine interdisciplinary teams of attorneys, many with technical backgrounds, from the firm's business litigation, class action, construction, environmental, complex insurance coverage and products liability groups.  We have advised clients on matters related to a broad variety of products and processes, including:

  • Acid Mine Drainage
  • Mold
  • Ammonia
  • Oleum
  • Asbestos
  • Paints
  • Benzene
  • PCBs
  • Chromated Copper Arsenate
  • Pentachlorophenol
  • Creosote
  • Phenol Formaldehyde
  • Cyanide
  • Trichloroethylene
  • Fuming Sulfuric Acid
  • Vinyl Chloride
  • Landfill Leachate
  • Welding Fumes
  • Lead
  • Xylene

We have defended our clients in serial lawsuits, mass torts, class actions, and other high-stakes litigation and have addressed toxic pollutants in every pathway, including indoor and outdoor air, surface water, and ground water. Some of our satisfied clients include:

  • Agfa Corporation
  • Apex Oil Company
  • Brown Forman Corporation
  • E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company
  • Goodrich Corporation
  • The Lighthouse for the Blind

The firm is also a member of the DuPont Network and currently defends DuPont in several toxic tort mass actions involving chemical releases. As a DuPont Primary Law Firm, we represent DuPont's interest in environmental and toxic tort actions as well as other claims involving various products.

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For a summary of significant representations, please click here.

For analysis and discussion of recent environmental issues, please check our environmental law blog: Tennessee Environmental Law Blog.